Vermont Statutes Title 21 Sec. 208
Terms Used In Vermont Statutes Title 21 Sec. 208
- Commissioner: means the Commissioner of Labor or designee. See
- Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
- Employer: means a person, as hereinafter defined, who employs one or more persons. See
- Lien: A claim against real or personal property in satisfaction of a debt.
- Person: means a natural person, corporation, partnership, trust, society, club, association, or other organization, including municipalities and the State and its instrumentalities. See
- Premises: means land and the structures thereon which contains a place of employment as herein defined. See
- VOSHA Code: means subchapters 4 and 5 of this chapter and 18 Vt. See
§ 208. Imminent danger
(a) Whenever the Commissioner finds that any workplace is in violation of any portion of the VOSHA Code or this chapter and that the violation creates a dangerous condition that can be reasonably expected to cause imminent death or serious physical harm, the Commissioner may order the workplace or any portion of the workplace to be immediately closed or order that steps be taken to avoid, correct, or remove the imminently dangerous conditions. The Commissioner may permit the presence of individuals necessary to avoid, correct, or remove the imminent danger, or to maintain the capacity of a continuous process operation to resume normal operations without complete cessation of operations, or where a cessation of operations is necessary, to permit it to be accomplished in a safe and orderly manner. On two business days’ notice to the Commissioner, an order issued under this section may be contested by filing a petition in Superior Court requesting dissolution or modification of the order. In that event, the court shall proceed to hear and to make an expeditious determination.
(b) In the event the court vacates or otherwise invalidates the Commissioner’s order based upon a finding of willful misconduct or gross negligence, the court may determine the amount of damages suffered by the employer on account of the issuance of the order and shall enter judgment in that amount for the employer.
(c) Any employer who violates an order of the Commissioner issued pursuant to subsection (a) of this section shall be fined not more than $5,000.00 per day.
(d) Notice of orders issued under this section shall be served by certified mail with return receipt requested or in person to all parties who have a recorded interest in the property where land records for the property are recorded, including owners, tenants, mortgagees, attaching creditors, lien holders, and public utilities or water companies serving the premises. (Added 1971, No. 205 (Adj. Sess.), § 1; amended 1973, No. 214 (Adj. Sess.), § 10; 1985, No. 150 (Adj. Sess.), § 1; 2017, No. 11, § 50.)